Pilot Study on the Use of Low-Field Nuclear Magnetic Resonance as a Noninvasive Tool for Monitoring Mucus in Obstructive Lung Diseases

Patients with muco-obstructive lung disease (MOLD) exhibit chronic bronchitis and inflammation, along with a progressive decline in lung function. Lung monitoring is typically performed using spirometry, especially by measuring the forced expired volume in the first second (FEV1). However, the limitations of spirometry motivated the exploration of alternative approaches. The spin–spin relaxation time (T2m) and the spin–lattice relaxation time (T1m) of sputum water hydrogens were measured using low-field nuclear magnetic resonance (LF-NMR) in 38 MOLD patients and 16 controls. The levels of TNFα/IL-6, the sputum microbiome composition/amount/indices and FEV1 were determined in parallel. We also investigated the correlation between T2m/T1m and the disease index (ID); ID, calculated relying on patient FEV1/TNFα/IL-6/bacteria concentration Cb values, is a measure of the patient’s distance from the average healthy control. We observed the following significant correlations: T2m/T1m with ID, T2m with Cb, a potential correlation of T2m with the bacteria genera Streptococcus and Staphylococcus, T2m with the Shannon index, which reflects the broadness of the bacterial community in the sputum, and T2m with TNFα. FEV1 did not show any correlation. Our noninvasive/radiation-free/portable method of T2m/T1m measurement shows potential value in monitoring lung conditions in MOLD patients and may contribute to improved clinical decision-making.